Every business needs to get in front of its customers. But, to really grow your business, you’re going to need to stay in front of your competitors. The best way to keep people excited about what you have to offer is by writing marketing copy that sings.
Not sure where to start? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. As a digital marketing agency, we’ve been in the search engine trenches for quite some time, and we know what high-quality content looks like. Here are 12 tips on how to write marketing copy!
What is marketing copy?
Think of your marketing copy as the written vehicle between you and your customers. Many know they’re being sold to, which is why you should always offer valuable information and introduce solutions to their problems. As a business, though, this vehicle is driving toward a call to action, which might mean:
- Seeking more information from your website.
- Submitting a contact form.
- Signing up for your newsletter.
- Downloading a case study or white paper.
No matter your purpose, the end goal of all marketing copy is to connect with your target audience and offer your statement of value. If you need some advice on having your message shine, we’ve got several easy ways to improve your marketing copy.
12 tips on how to write marketing copy effectively
Choose realistic marketing goals when writing marketing copy
In digital marketing, no one can afford to write just for the sake of writing. Your marketing copy, like any writing, needs a purpose. Choosing realistic marketing goals helps you have better aim from inception to deployment.
Here are some common marketing goals that marketers and business owners choose before even bothering about the steps involved in marketing copywriting:
- Increase organic traffic.
- Drive lead generation.
- Build domain authority.
- Bolster brand awareness.
If you’ve ever gone to a seminar, you may have learned about SMART goals. This means that a goal is specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and timely. Making your goals SMART means narrowing down what you’re really trying to accomplish. For example, a SMART goal would be increasing organic traffic on your website by 10% by the end of next quarter.
See what’s ranking the highest
Getting your content in front of your target searchers takes strategy and a smidge of luck with search engine algorithms. Before you commit to content creation, you should learn what’s getting prime spots on search engine results pages (SERPs).
SERP analysis is a vital part of any content strategy for much of the same reason as setting clear goals. You shouldn’t create content that won’t ever get seen, and if you’re not on the top three pages of Google, you likely won’t.
Type your target keyword into the search field and zero in on what’s being done with it. It’s good to emulate the strategies that are working, as they’re obviously doing something right, but you may also find opportunities for content gaps you’re seeing.
Create outlines with heading tags in your marketing copy
This one’s simple, but marketing copy needs to be tight. Avoid meandering by outlining your content beforehand and using heading tags wisely. Each heading (or H-tag) serves as a mini-goal that you’re writing your way toward.
Also, an integral part of SEO copywriting involves putting the keywords you hope to rank for in your headings and subheadings. That’s because search engine crawlers see H-tags first before scanning them to determine what your content’s about and how it should be indexed.
Focus on creating quality content
Of course, great marketing copy writing is subjective, but there are certain mainstays that all excellent copy has in common that their lesser-ranked counterparts don’t. Content that sticks the landing is helpful, in-depth, and unique.
Here are some qualities to evaluate your content on:
- Clarity and conciseness.
- Consistent brand voice.
- Focused, in-depth discussion of the topic.
- Audience-centric, tactical writing.
That last point is key and leads perfectly to our next point.
Make sure you’re answering a question through marketing copywriting
Your content should ideally answer your audience’s search query. When writing marketing copy, think hard about what an interested customer might search for in their day-to-day life that would lead them to your doorstep.
For instance, if your business mainly sells exercise equipment to apartment buildings, you may want to write reviews on the best kinds of equipment for small gyms or how to go about updating equipment over time.
To understand your searcher inside and out, consider their search intent. This means why they’re searching for a specific query. Search engines strive to give searchers the most on-point results possible. A solid SEO content plan will be a beacon to understanding your audience’s needs.
Marketing copy needs to be free of long sentences and paragraphs
Most people are scanners. No one is going to read a massive paragraph or dense, jargon-heavy sentences to answer a quick concern. Marketing copywriting needs to incorporate touchpoints where scanners can find relevant information.
Keep your paragraphs on the short side, no more than five lines or so. Make sure your sentences aren’t overly long, as this can be a readability obstacle. The better your readability, the more effective you’ll be at aligning with search intent, thus ranking higher on SERPs.
Include relevant links and anchor text
A piece of content is a hub for other content, and the SEO ecosystem runs on hyperlinks to other pages. Each link should have relevant anchor text that gives the reader a glimpse at the source behind the link. Linking to even more helpful content boosts your own credibility and authority on the topic.
We all get by with a little help from our friends, and that means backlinks. Backlinks in the SEO world refer to the hyperlinks you incorporate into your content that link back to another website. When you link to another website, Google will notice and align your content with theirs. That website might even link to you in the future, which can lead their readers right back to you!
Break up text with rich media
One of the best ways to break up text density and make your content more scannable is with rich media, which is any content with advanced features. This includes:
- Photos
- GIFs
- Videos
- Infographics
- Podcasts
Just like making your content concise, rich media improves the user experience and the readability of your content. One of the biggest benefits of rich media, though, is increased engagement. It isn’t just about content quality; users spend more time with rich media than text, meaning you’ll have them on your page for longer.
Include a meta-description and alt-text
Just when you thought getting all your thoughts into a single Tweet was impossible, let us introduce you to the meta-description.
A meta description is an HTML tag that tells readers and search engines what your content’s about in about 150 characters. It’s often your reader’s first encounter with your content, so you want it to inspire a click. The meta description better have your target keyword in it, or it could be a waste of time!
Make sure to add some alt-text, too. This gives your reader a description of what an image looks like and its purpose. Including alt-text is helpful for SEO reasons, but it’s vital for accessibility reasons. Try to include your target keyword in alt-text where you can, but it’s not necessary for every image.
Use content optimization tools
If you want to see real results, you’ll need to commit to content optimization. This means ensuring every piece of content has the technical edges it needs to be effective.
You shouldn’t go about optimization alone, either. With countless optimization tools out there, you can opt for one that perfectly fits your content strategy and goals, so do your research and find what works best for you. For SEO, we recommend tools like Semrush, Ahrefs, and Moz Pro.
You could even wash your hands of content optimization completely, leaving it to experts. Ranq is a digital marketing agency with a world-class team of SEO experts that know exactly what your content needs to be optimized. We’ll even provide you with several pieces of fully optimized blog content per month.
Do a thorough edit to correct mistakes
No one wants to put out content with mistakes, but it does happen. While not every reader is going to be hawk-eyed about errors, mistakes in your content can diminish your ethos on the subject you’re writing about. Style errors aren’t a direct ranking factor, but low-quality content will influence user experience.
Mistakes show that less care was put into the writing, and they carry the stench of unprofessionalism, which users and search engines frown upon. Read through and revise your content several times before publishing it.
Publish content consistently
It’s a bit silly, but the best thing you can do for your content is to keep making content. Content marketing is a long game, and reaching your goals is going to be a lot harder if you can’t maintain your momentum.
Don’t have the capacity to stay on the SEO trail forever? Ranq can help you with that. We’ll give you 4-6 pieces of content a month to publish on your website and start building your authority slowly but surely.
Revisit underperforming content
Once you release your content into the wild, you’ve still got to check up on it to see how it’s doing. By studying your engagement metrics and other KPIs, you can zero in on what might need revamping, updating, or reframing in your content.
You should also check what you’re earning impressions for. This includes seeing what keywords you’re ranking for and how many people are viewing your content on social media. Improvements can be made over time to get a wider reach out of existing content.
Leave marketing copywriting to the SEO pros at Ranq!
Learning how to write marketing copy that connects and converts isn’t everyone’s forte, but putting out effective content on the web will remain non-negotiable. We hope our quick tips will set you on the right content-creation path. If you still need help, let the SEO experts at Ranq take the lead.
Our team will work with you to clarify your content marketing goals before hammering out the best plan for you. From there, our writers and editors will work their magic, channeling your brand’s voice into marketing copy that will resonate with your target audience and search engines. Contact Ranq today, and let us show you how quality marketing content can rank high on SERPs and lead to the conversions you’ve always hoped for.